Go and Make Disciples: How Discipleship in the Form of Small Groups Reaches and Cares for Single Adults in their Twenties and Thirties

Abstract

According to the 2020 U.S. census, nearly 50 percent of the population is single or never-married. Statistics show an increase in the single population, but has that resulted in increased single adults in Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) church pews? Or have young, single people avoided the idea of church to find community, purpose, identity, and accountability elsewhere? Unfortunately, there is a disconnect between the growing number of young single people worldwide and the decreasing number of young single people in the pews. As the number of single people in society increases, a WELS church will want to ask this question, “What strategies can pastors implement to create and foster a church community which cares for and reaches out to single people in their twenties and thirties?” This thesis paper seeks to answer this question by examining the possibility of creating that community through small groups. Throughout this paper, the reader will hear from WELS pastors, WELS members, and published authors who have rigorously studied singles ministry and small group ministry.